The security situation in some countries is cause for major concern. As an example, African states where RSA involvement is growing larger such as Mozambique and Angola, due to difficult social conditions, have serious crime and corruption problems. Developed and developing countries, on the other hand, are more socially and politically stable but the crime problem may also be serious, particularly in large urban areas. Caracas (Venezuela's capital) for instance, has similar crime problems to those experienced in Johannesburg. The incidence of violent crime is extremely high, particularly the murder rate. According to Interpol crime statistics, 8022 people were murdered in 2000 across the country, a great number of murders being committed in the Caracas urban area alone. Violent robberies and attacks on foreign business people and tourists are also common.

In some regions of the world, Latin America for instance, kidnapping of business executives in exchange for ransom money has been a growing problem. This is due to factors such as the increasing number of people travelling to the region on business, weak and often corrupt law enforcement and continued disparity between poverty and wealth.

The threat of terrorism

International terrorist organisations have also resorted to kidnapping tactics in order to further their cause and obtain money to finance their activities on a worldwide scale. Nowadays the threat of terrorism, including nuclear and biological attacks, is at an all time high. International crime syndicates, eg, Russian and Italian mafia, are known to have been involved in trafficking nuclear waste and biological materials from the ex USSR. While some areas are affected almost on a daily basis by acts of terror, the reality is that modern terrorists, in spite of the preventative efforts from law enforcement and intelligence agencies, have the network and capabilities to strike anywhere in the world as they deem necessary. The result is that everybody can be a potential victim. However, this does not mean that companies and organisations should not do their utmost to protect both their human and material resources against this global threat.

According to a recent survey published by Deloitte & Touche Human Capital Corporation (HCC), almost a quarter of large organisations in South Africa deem it necessary to provide security for their executives and immediate family. The most common forms are house alarm and armed response, but they are closely followed by security lights, remote control gates and by security guards. The greater majority of these organisations pay the full cost of this security. However, the reality is that not much is being done to protect business executives when travelling abroad.

Doing business and travelling to unfamiliar countries poses specific problems to companies and executives' security in that they are suddenly exposed to various risk factors such as:

* Crime - each country and city presents unique security problems. Large cities, particularly in under-developed countries where unemployment is rife, are known to be a safe haven for criminals due to the anonymity of the urban areas. Some areas in a city can be totally off limit due to a very high incidence of violent crime. Hence the importance of being fully informed, prior to our departure, about the local crime situation in order to be prepared and able to adopt the necessary crime preventative strategies.

* Terrorism and conflict - some countries are known to be politically and socially unstable. This factor poses additional risk to companies, organisations and travelling executives and representatives. Some of the major risk factors which can be encountered are human rights abuse by local authorities, sudden strikes or riots, terrorism attacks, hostage taking and kidnapping for both political demands and ransom (foreigners and business executives are very often the preferred targets). The possibility of being singled out as a suitable target by anti-global movements, particularly when the travelling executive belongs to a multinational company, should not be underestimated. Sometimes foreigners are victimised simply because they hold the passport of a specific country, which happens to be considered by terrorists as the enemy. Hence the importance of obtaining up to date information (intelligence) on the current political and social situation of the country we intend travelling to, in order to avoid being caught in life threatening situations. In this regard, it is also extremely important to be kept informed on an on going basis about the very latest political/conflict developments in a specific country, in order to be able to protect our business interests and make crucial decisions in time of need, before reaching a crisis situation.

* Travel risk - the risk of victimisation linked to travelling begins at the very moment when we leave our home to go to the local airport. Many airports and hotels around the world are far from being safe in that they are often the targets of criminal and terrorist organisations. Airport and hotel crime may involve various criminal activities ranging from non-violent crime, such as pick-pocketing, bag-snatching, luggage theft, document theft, car theft and theft from motor vehicles, to violent crime such as robbery, kidnapping and terrorism. Company executives and representatives travelling with valuable merchandise or sensitive documents are particularly at risk as they may be specifically targeted by international crime and commercial-industrial espionage syndicates.

* Emergency and crisis situations - one of the aspects which is often neglected by corporate businesses and organisations is planning for any possible risk and emergencies which may arise during a business/professional venture or trip. The following are crucial questions which we should ask ourselves prior to our venture and departure. Have we determined our exposure to risk in the foreign country, including which risks pose the greatest threat and how they can be averted? Have we adequately insured in respect of all possible risk factors? Do we know the physical address and telephone numbers of our diplomatic offices in the visited countries? Do we know the local emergency telephone numbers? Do we know which local hospital/clinic offers the best possible medical facilities? Healthcare in some countries can be a real nightmare. Do we know whether we will be able to have effective communication with our families/companies at all times? Have we carefully planned for the security of our families back home? Did we entrust their security to a screened company? Should something happen, are we ready to manage the crisis at all levels? Can we rely on the assistance of a professional company that can take care of all necessities?

* No matter what region/country we are travelling to, we must plan ahead and never wait until we are in the middle of an emergency to address important risk factors.

About the author

Elio Zannoni is a criminologist and specialist in crime risk factors and prevention strategies. He can be contacted at International Threat Analysis (division of Corporate Confidential Solutions), a company involved in the analysis of crime threat and risks worldwide. Tel: 011 792 3739, fax: 011 791 6352, 083 460 5990, ita@c-c-s.co.za